This is not really a post about sex. But it sort of is. Most of us have seen those commercials for Viagra and other products that treat ED. The commercials feature pictures of people like the couple on bikes in today's photo (though they need bike helmets!) Like most drugs,…
About a year ago, I raised my desk so I could stand for most of my work day. I wrote about it last September, a couple of months into the "experiment" which turned into a permanent change. I originally raised my desk after I read in several places that sitting…
Someone recently forwarded to me a note called, “20 Things the Rich Do Every Day.” Apparently, the material is from the bestselling book, Rich Habits. While my site is not about becoming wealthy in the monetary sense, I like a definition I once read that said that wealth is an…
In order to make changes that stick, I take my big goals and break them down into small pieces. Then I focus on one at a time until it becomes a habit. The goal of safer driving is a good one, but it's one of those big, non-specific goals that…
Albany is about two-and-a-quarter hours north of where I live in the NYC area. I was driving up to Albany one morning early this year. It’s a drive I’ve made countless times. First, during the four years I went to college in Albany in the 1980s, and more recently during…
Last year, when Marcie and I celebrated our 25th anniversary, I published an article in the Six Simple Rules newsletter with my thoughts about marriage, and about divorce (and happiness). A version of the article was published on the new Love Fairy site, a sister site to Purpose Fairy, where…
My yoga teacher Lucy shares wonderful messages with us—messages of gratitude, calm, peace, and happiness. Recently, she shared the quote, "Service to others is our rent for living in this world." As I've said here before, I've also learned that service to others is the single best strategy to ensure…
I recently read a powerful story in What Happy People Know, a book by Dan Baker. He explained he was working with a super stressed out business owner and trying to help him to delegate more. The business owner said he could not delegate more because so many of his…
This is a guest post by Julie Singer, who teaches us, among other things, something we've discussed before: one of the great sources of happiness is helping others. As a college student, at times you can feel like you have no control over anything. It may be your emotions, your…
When I was a kid, I was a speed eater. My dad would tell me and my siblings to chew our food 30 times before swallowing, but we ignored his advice and his good example (he is the slowest eater I have ever met). I did learn to eat more…
Soon after two close friends of mine spent two days at a health and relaxation retreat, my wife and I were at a dinner hosted by one of them. There were six couples at dinner including the hosts. When we sat down to eat, we each found a piece of…
This week marks the one-year anniversary of Make New Friends Monday. Here's an updated version of an earlier post I wrote, recounting and celebrating the great experience #mnfm has been for me, and others. When my kids were home from college for winter break just over a year ago, the…